Tuesday, May 2, 2017

"Don't try to fix what isn't broken," said Ryabkov. "It would be an undesirable and negative turn of events that would only serve to pour oil on the flames in the Middle East."

Entering an EU summit early Friday, Michel said he did not want to say anything “that would pour oil on the flames” and said he feared positions were hardening as efforts continued to find a solution.

Had the Kurds been able to capture Jarabulus and surrounding areas, they would have connected the two Kurdish-held areas in northern Syria, creating a de facto autonomous state along Turkey’s border. This would have fulfilled a longstanding dream of the Kurds but it would have been anathema (lời nguyền rủa) to Ankara, which fears that an autonomous Kurdish entity in Syria would pour oil on the flames of its own Kurdish conflict.